Monday night left a 17-19 Los Angeles Chargers loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 7 of the 2024 NFL. It was a setback that hurts the prospects of head coach Jim Harbaugh‘s team, which sits with a 3-3 record so far this season. The game was notable for the controversy surrounding one particular play.
Late in the game, Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert threw a deep pass to wide receiver Simi Fehoko. The ball went far over the target, who was tangled up with Cardinals corner Max Melton. As the ball went away, an official threw a handkerchief at Melton, but the referees stepped in and ruled that there was no pass interference foul because the ball was uncatchable.
Harbaugh did not question the catchability of the ball, which was undoubtedly difficult to connect on, but focused his complaint on the foul on Fehoko. To the Chargers head coach, the play should have been a defensive holding infraction regardless of the pass.
Harbaugh’s strong message to NFL referees
“I saw that they were holding our catcher and wrapping him up. They were signaling that he couldn’t be caught. We had a double play going and they grabbed him. I’ll let the refs explain how they called that play,” was Harbaugh’s strong message to NFL referees after the loss to the Cardinals.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh of the Los Angeles Chargers looks on during the second half of the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium on September 22, 2024 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The referees’ explanation of the controversial play
Referee Clete Blakeman clarified after the game that all the referees discussed and agreed that the trajectory of the ball made it uncatchable. However, this does not explain the failure to call the play that Harbaugh protested.
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A controversial MNF between the Cardinals and Chargers
The game could have been different if the Chargers had the offense to kick the field goal, giving them a better chance to score the winning touchdown. The scenario was different and the Chargers had to kick their field goal at that point, giving the Cardinals a chance to kick their own game-winning field goal to take the win.
There was another controversial play involving a helmet-to-helmet hit that gave the Cardinals 15 yards and an automatic first down. Harbaugh refused to criticize the call. “It came down to a lot of details. I don’t think that play was the only play. I thought both teams played well,” the Chargers head coach said.
